Why wait a year or two? it sounds like you already have some packers, wont they do the job just the same on an elk? Boned out, (which you have to do with goats anyways,) an elk wont be more than 200lbs (quarters, backstraps, and tenderloins) especially if you do some of your trimming onsite. So, worst case you need 4 goats, and if the bull is a little smaller, you only need 3 goats. When I bow hunt, Im ten miles back in, all by my lonesome, and I just take just 3 goats and 28lbs of gear for 3-5 days at a time. I can get out with a boned out elk by myself on a one way trip back to the truck no problem. I typically have a couple obers and a lamancha, or three obers, or a couple obers and an alpine with me. Alpines are great, but I like the Obers for their color (its just my opinion, but I figure they look kind of like a calf elk, so I figure they are less distracting to my quarry) and their work ethic. They arent that big, but they work hard. That said, I will reiterait one of my previous concepts, breed to breed you will have good and bad. Out of my 3 top goats (out of 17), one is an Ober, one is a Lamancha, and one is a Sannen. Perhaps someday someone will come up with the perfect combination of cross breeding to make the 'perfect' pack goat, but for me, the goats of today do the job just fine, and have exceeded all of my own expectations.